North Carolina City Ordered to Remove Memorial Featuring Soldier Kneeling before Cross

A city in North Carolina has removed a war memorial featuring the silhouette of a soldier kneeling before a cross after a group complained that the sculpture promoted Christianity. 

According to Fox News, a public park in King, North Carolina housed the statue which had been paid for privately. 

Americans United for Separation of Church and State sued the city on behalf of Afghanistan War veteran Steven Hewett who said that the memorial was not representative to others he served with in the military.  

In a news release, Hewett said, “I proudly served alongside a diverse group of soldiers with a variety of different religious beliefs. The City of King should be honoring everyone who served our country, not using their service as an excuse to promote a single religion.”

According to the settlement, King is required to pay Americans United for Separation of Church and State $500,000 for court costs. The King city council voted last Tuesday to remove the memorial in an effort to prevent the legal costs from growing even higher.

After the vote, City Councilman Wesley Carter was quoted as saying, “I feel this city has been sabotaged and bullied by folks who don’t believe in what this community stands for. I feel like we have been pressured by insurance companies and attorneys who have never been to King. They don’t know what we are about and what this community stands for.”

Publication date: January 12, 2015